Hello! I’m Sarita, a conservation biologist, geographer and planner by training (fun fact: I have 3 master’s degrees!). I’m also an islander (born in the Canary Islands, Spain), with British-Indian roots. My work and research in environmental conservation and planning over the last 10 years has taken me to far-flung and beautiful places across the Earth, such as the Galápagos Islands, Borneo, Greece and Iceland. I feel very lucky!

Some of my most recent work includes:

• Mapping and assessing 300 street trees for Reykjavik’s Municipal Environmental Planning department, working with arborists and GIS teams to create a tree management plan which increased tree diversity, ensured pedestrian safety and improved climate resilience

• Interviewing 12 urban and rural gardeners in their home gardens about their gardening practices, identifying the personal value of home gardening to help inform green space management (I presented these findings at two conferences and also wrote a book chapter about my work!)

• Working with stakeholders at the Province of Friesland to evaluate the contribution of Dutch and EU projects towards Sustainable Development Goals and nature based solutions.

• Managing a 47,000-specimen collection and database of dried plants in the Galápagos Islands, as well as growing this plant collection by leading botanical surveys in 14 sites in 7 islands across the archipelago.

• Working with the ecological restoration, reforestation, and sustainable agriculture project Galapagos Verde 2050 to replant native and endemic species using water-saving technologies across the Galápagos Islands.

• Carrying out tropical conservation fieldwork at Danau Girang Field Centre in Borneo, tracking nocturnal mammal habitats using radio tags, ringing and monitoring birds, and studying pangolin and elephant diets.

• Researching reef fish and marine ecosystems in the Wakatobi National Park in Indonesia for the conservation of coral reef systems with Operation Wallacea.

• Co-founding GEnHub (Galapagos Entrepreneurship Hub), a community of professionals working towards sustainability in the Galápagos Islands, and a space to meet, discuss and share, set objectives and seek advice.

I am open to opportunities and collaborations on projects with a similar mission - to advance sustainable solutions that support nature conservation and improve human wellbeing - bringing my own expertise in communications and writing, project design and management, data processing and analysis, and partnerships.